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2024/2025  BA-BMAKO3001U  Consumer Insights and Behavioral Studies

English Title
Consumer Insights and Behavioral Studies

Course information
Language English
Course ECTS 15 ECTS
Type Mandatory (also offered as elective)
Level Bachelor
Duration One Semester
Start time of the course Autumn
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Study board
Study Board for BSc in Business Administration and Market Dynamics and Cultural Analysis
Course coordinator
  • Jan Michael Bauer - Department of Management, Society and Communication (MSC)
  • Meike Janssen - Department of Management, Society and Communication (MSC)
Main academic disciplines
  • Customer behaviour
  • Methodology and philosophy of science
  • Statistics and quantitative methods
Teaching methods
  • Blended learning
Last updated on 24-06-2024

Relevant links
Learning objectives
To achieve the grade 12, students should meet the following learning objectives with no or only minor mistakes or errors:
  • display an understanding of the theories of consumer behaviour
  • be able to use methods of quantitative consumer research (including sampling methods, data collection methods and statistical data analysis methods)
  • design and conduct a quantitative consumer research project
  • evaluate consumer research projects regarding its strengths and weaknesses of all its parts (i.e. theoretical foundation, sampling, data collection, data analysis, & discussion of results)
  • present and interpret quantitative research in a clear and comprehensive way following academic standards
  • reflect on ethical considerations related to quantitative consumer research processes
Examination
Consumer Insight and Behavioral Studies:
Exam ECTS 15
Examination form Oral exam based on written product

In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and the individual oral performance, see also the rules about examination forms in the programme regulations.
Individual or group exam Individual oral exam based on written group product
Number of people in the group 3-5
Size of written product Max. 25 pages
Assignment type Report
Release of assignment An assigned subject is released in class
Duration
Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
15 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade, and informing plus explaining the grade
Grading scale 7-point grading scale
Examiner(s) Internal examiner and second internal examiner
Exam period Winter
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
If the examination grade is at 00 or below, a substantial project revision must be undertaken prior to re-submission. To facilitate this, within eight days after the oral examination, the examiners submit a 1-page written report on the project, outlining ways to improve it.

Reexamination when the regular examination is failed by one group member, is an individual oral exam based upon the same project. Same rules apply for sickness of individual group members during the oral exam.
Description of the exam procedure

Students choose their own research topic within the scope of the exam assignment. There are clear guidelines about the assignment, which will be introduced and elaborated upon in class.
Course content, structure and pedagogical approach

This course in Consumer Insights and Behavioural Studies combines three main learning elements: (1) the course provides students an advanced understanding of how consumers behave by introducing the most relevant theories of consumer behaviour; (2) it gives an overview of essential quantitative research methods to study this behavior; and (3) it provides students with experience in applying the theories and methods, i.e. students conduct their own consumer research project as part of this course.

 

The course will introduce new perspectives on human behaviour from the fields of behavioural economics, consumer behaviour, and psychology, with a particular focus on sustainable consumption and respective theories and empirical examples.

 

Beyond these theoretical advancements, the course will provide students the ability to conduct consumer research by providing students with a profound understanding of the entire research process and introduce the most important research methods focusing on a quantitative approach (i.e. surveys and experiments and the respective sampling and data analysis methods). In practical sessions, students will learn to apply the methods of consumer research (sampling, data collection, and data analysis) to specific research problems regarding consumer behaviour in the physical as well as in the digital world.

 

Students will apply these capabilities in a student-driven research project. Guided by the teachers, students will formulate their research questions to generate novel insights through research, propose a research design to study the problem, and draw conclusions based on the project’s results. The course will also enable students to conduct responsible research by providing students with an overview of relevant ethical considerations surrounding consumer research. Students will become acquainted with documenting their research process and clearly describing their results and methodology in a written report as well as in an oral exam. Through group projects and assignments, students will gain additional skills in team work.
Description of the teaching methods
Aiming to provide students with the capability to conduct consumer research on their own, this course combines (limited) on campus and online lectures, practical workshops, assignments and blended learning elements. For the exam, students will write a research report. Reports are usually written in groups of 3-4 students and require students to organize, plan and coordinate a consumer research project as a team. This includes the formulation of a research question, conducting a literature review, selection of a theoretical framework, developing a research design, collecting and analyzing data, and academic write up of the results and their discussion. The report and oral presentation will require students to summarize and interpret their findings and distill novel insights and knowledge gained from their own research inquiry.
Feedback during the teaching period
The course will have group assignments in preparation of 3 x 20 minute group supervision sessions with a lecturer. Additional feedback is provided through blended learning elements.
Student workload
Lectures + Workshops (on-campus, online/pre-recorded) 70 hours
Assignments + Supervision 45 hours
Report writing + Exam preparation 140 hours
Background research and reading 157 hours
Expected literature

Journal articles:

  • Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211.
  • Camerer, C. (1999). Behavioral economics: Reunifying psychology and economics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 96, 10575–10577.
  • Constantino, S. M., Sparkman, G., Kraft-Todd, G. T., Bicchieri, C., Centola, D., Shell-Duncan, B., ... & Weber, E. U. (2022). Scaling up change: a critical review and practical guide to harnessing social norms for climate action. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 23(2), 50-97.
  • Hofmann, W., Baumeister, R. F., Förster, G., & Vohs, K. D. (2012). Everyday temptations: an experience sampling study of desire, conflict, and self-control. Journal of personality and social psychology, 102(6), 1318.
  • Hofmann, W., Friese, M., & Strack, F. (2009). Impulse and Self-Control From a Dual-Systems Perspective. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 4, 162–176.
  • Kahneman, D. (2003). A Perspective on Judgment and Choice: Mapping Bounded Rationality. American Psychologist, 58, 697–720.
  • Lange, F., & Dewitte, S. (2019). Measuring pro-environmental behavior: Review and recommendations. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 63, 92-100.
  • Michie, S., Van Stralen, M. M., & West, R. (2011). The behaviour change wheel: a new method for characterising and designing behaviour change interventions. Implementation science, 6, 1-12.
  • Nielsen, K. S., Clayton, S., Stern, P. C., Dietz, T., Capstick, S., & Whitmarsh, L. (2021). How psychology can help limit climate change. American Psychologist, 76(1), 130.
  • Papies, E. K., Nielsen, K. S., & Soares, V. A. (2024). Health Psychology and Climate Change: Time to address humanity’s most existential crisis. Health Psychology Review, 1-31.
  • Samson, A., & Voyer, B. G. (2012). Two minds, three ways: dual system and dual process models in consumer psychology. AMS Review, 2, 48–71.
  • Schwartz, S. H. (2012). An Overview of the Schwartz Theory of Basic Values. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(1). https:/​/​doi.org/​10.9707/​2307-0919.1116
  • Sniehotta, F. F., Presseau, J., & Araújo-Soares, V. (2014). Time to retire the theory of planned behaviour. Health psychology review, 8(1), 1-7.
  • Steg, L., Perlaviciute, G., Werff, E., & Lurvink, J. (2014). The Significance of Hedonic Values for Environmentally Relevant Attitudes, Preferences, and Actions. Environment and Behavior 46:2, 163-192. https:/​/​doi.org/​10.1177/​0013916512454730


Book chapters:

  • Mooi, E., & Sarstedt, M. (2014). A Concise Guide to Market Research. The Process, Data, and Methods Using IBM SPSS Statistics, Berlin, Heidelberg, Springer.
  • Saunders, M. (2016). Research methods for business students, 7th edition, Harlow, Pearson Education Limited.
  • Solomon et al. (2016). Consumer Behaviour - A European Perspective, 6th edition, Harlow, Pearson Education Limited.
Last updated on 24-06-2024